PBA: Alapag leads Talk n' Text to third straight win

Jimmy Alapag scored 16 points with four assists on 4-of-6 shooting from the three-point area to lead the Talk n' Text Tropang Texters to their third win in a row, 96-89, against the Air21 Express Wednesday at the Mall of Asia Arena.  

The veteran point guard scored eight straight points in a definiteive run in the fourth quarter that broke the game wide open for the Tropang Texters. After Alapag’s flurry, it was all about lead management for the two-time defending Philippine Cup Champions.

 

“I think we played much better in the second half,” said Talk ‘N Text head coach Norman Black. “We committed way too many turnovers which led to turnover points for them.”

 

The Air21 Express started the game hot, outscoring the Tropang Texters 28-20. They even had a five point lead at halftime thanks largely to the efforts of KG Canaleta and Nelbert Omolon. Canaleta shot 3 of 4 from the three point range and 2 of 4 from the two point range to total 13 points after 24 minutes of action. Omolon, on the other hand, scored on all of his five attempts from the two point area for 10 points for a 50-45 spread at the end of the second.

 

As he had shown in his eight-year UAAP career with the Ateneo Blue Eagles, Black once again used some of his magic to turn the tide coming into the third quarter. “We ran a free flowing offense in the second half," Black said. “We tried to run a lot of plays on offense in the first half that didn’t really work so we decided to go back to the usual free flowing offense.”

 

The multi-titled coach also admitted that his wards are still not in peak form especially because it’s only his second game as the Talk ‘N Text head coach. “It’s going to take time,” he said. “These things do not happen overnight. Today we were better than the last game so hopefully we’ll be better on our next game.”

 

This also marked the first time that Black faced Air21 head coach Franz Pumaren in the PBA. The two had a rivalry in the UAAP coaching the Ateneo Blue Eagles and the La Salle Green Archers, respectively. “Facing him in the PBA is not much different from facing him in the UAAP,” shared Black. “He still runs the press.”

 

The Tropang Texters exploded for 31 points in the third quarter while holding the Express to a paltry 17 points. “We defended better in the second half,” said Black. “We adjusted by inserting more big men to the rotation to prevent their post ups from KG [Canaleta] and Omolon.”